2 comments/ 10392 views/ 2 favorites Life’s Strange Turns Ch. 05-06 By: deadeye_76 *******Dennis ******* When I got back to my new apartment in Chicago I paced, I cried, I got angry. I called Jennifer and left a rambling rant about her being a lying, cheating, two-faced slut. Finally, about 6am, I was exhausted and fell asleep. Chapter 5. Dec 18th, 2000 *******Jennifer ******* I woke up still on the couch, still wearing my party clothes. I walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth and was horrified by what I saw in the mirror. I looked like death warmed over. I looked at the clock. Shit, I had slept until 9am! I had to get to Chicago and see Dennis! I finished brushing my teeth and went back into the living room. I looked at Regina, curled up in Dennis' favorite easy chair. She looked cold, so I threw a blanket over her and headed out the door. On the drive, I tried to think of what I would say. The only solution was telling him the truth. What he had heard was not what I was trying to convey. I was being snide with my friends because they were pushing me to tell them about it. It was a stupid, stupid mistake with a stupid, stupid man. Maybe that's what hurt even more. I made this mistake with an asshole that wasn't worth anything! I had to get there and straighten this out. I pushed the accelerator down some more and hoped there were no cops out this morning. *******Dennis ******* I slowly became cognizant of a banging sound at about noon. I looked up at the clock for verification that it was no longer morning. I had hoped to sleep away the entire weekend. It was only Saturday. The pain that I felt had nothing to do with the alcohol. It was purely the betrayal of my beautiful Jennifer. She had betrayed me when we said we would be exclusive, and then I had to hear about it eight months later when she was drunk, bragging to her friends about fucking Don, a complete asshole. I rolled off the couch and approached the door, the apparent source of the banging. I looked thru the peephole. It was Jennifer. Shit! What could I do? She knew I was home because of the phone call and my car. The apartments had marked parking spots and mine was in its proper place. Fuck! I opened the door. Jennifer looked like hell. She was rumpled, her eyes were bloodshot, her eyeliner had left tear streaks down her face, and she looked exhausted. She just stood there. I was still angry and took the hard line. "What the fuck do you want?" "I guess I deserve that. I'm so sorry, Dennis. It's just that...." I cut her off. "Sorry about what? Sorry that it slipped your mind that eight months ago, when we were supposed to be exclusive, you fucked Don? Why? Was he better than me? You couldn't be without a man's dick for a week? What? Then I have to find out when you are telling your slut friends at a party how you went out and fucked another guy behind my back? Which part are you sorry about?" She stood there dejected and defeated. She hung her head and started to cry. Between her sobs came a few words. "So sorry... I wanted to tell you... it was such a mistake... I was frightened by my feelings for you... love you so much... can't imagine being without you... please... don't turn me away...." I just stared. I was so angry I couldn't see Jennifer any more. Just some woman who had fucked a guy I knew. "Jennifer, I don't ever want to see you again. You fucked up and you have to pay the price, now get out of my life." She looked at me, tears streaming down her face and turned and fled. I just stood there and watched the love of my life leave. Then I went back to the couch and turned on the TV looking for college bowl games. I did do one thing right that day. I called the company I had decided to work for and accepted their offer. It meant I would start work on Monday and could get my mind off of Jennifer. *******Jennifer ******* He was still so angry I fled back to my car. I sat in it for about 30 minutes, trying to compose myself. I had never seen him so angry. Of course, I had never seen anyone in this type of situation. I was freaked out. I couldn't see well enough to drive yet. I couldn't stop sobbing. Shit! How had I gone from the happiest day of my life to the most fucked up so quickly. I looked up into the mirror and yelled at myself. "Because you acted like a fucking Neanderthal 'guy' with cold feet and fucked someone else!" As soon as I said it, I looked around. I didn't see anyone and hoped that nobody heard that. I didn't realize I was yelling at myself until the end. I finally got myself together and drove back to Champaign. When I got to my house, all my close friends were there, waiting to hear from me. When I walked in they all looked at me questioningly and when I teared up, they knew that I had been unsuccessful. They all walked over and gave me a group hug. That was good, because I was so emotionally and physically drained, I was ready to collapse. I pushed my way out of their grasp and walked to the couch and did so. I made one last phone call asking Dennis to please at least talk to me. I felt that I might at least be able to explain how I was feeling and that we might be able to get past this, but he never answered the phone and I left a short message. They tried to console me, but I was alone with my thoughts even while they discussed possibilities. I had fucked up and I had to pay the price. His words. I knew that he was going to be angry for a while, but maybe after a week I could try again. I loved the guy. I knew that. I knew that he loved me. I just had to get past the next couple of days. I got up and all my girlfriends fell silent, staring up at me. I walked upstairs to my bedroom and collapsed on the bed, still in my clothes. I don't even remember falling asleep, but when I woke a while later my dress was gone and I was under the covers. I tried to think that tomorrow would be better and drifted back to sleep. Dec 19th, 2000 *******Dennis ******* Sunday was the worst day of my life. I had thought that Friday night and the Saturday confrontation with Jennifer were bad, but Sunday was worse. First, I had to face it alone. For the first time in a year, I woke up knowing that the woman I had loved was not going to be there. I tried to stay angry, but now I just grew morose. I got phone calls, none of which I answered, from several of her friends, telling me how bad it was for Jennifer. For her? For HER!?! My heart had been wrenched out of my chest by her betrayal and it was bad for her? That made my anger come back for a while, but I always returned to just being sad. I tried to watch football. I tried to work on the computer. I tried to do anything, but I couldn't concentrate. About 4pm, Jennifer called again and left a message. She said that she knew she could never make it up to me, but wanted to try to explain and talk again. I never answered her call. *******Jennifer ******* I woke up about 7pm, smelled food, and found my stomach was growling. I had not had anything to eat since before the party. I crawled out of bed, took off my bra, panties and stockings, and put on the robe that Dennis normally used. It was big and fluffy and smelled like him. I walked downstairs and my girlfriends were all in the kitchen making spaghetti and talking. I walked in and it went silent for just a second and then they were all over me, pampering me. They helped me to a chair, asked if I need something to drink, and served me a dish of spaghetti. After a few bites I started to feel a little more refreshed physically. I looked up at them. "I don't suppose he called, did he? You would have awakened me for that, right?" They all nodded. I walked over to the phone and pressed the message button. "Wait!" Regina said loudly. I looked at her. "What?" Then the message started playing. It was from Dennis, from early yesterday morning. "Well, that was a fucking disaster. I thought you loved me, you two-faced slut. I can't remember feeling like such an idiot. You standing there... telling your story about Don to your girlfriends... how you fucked someone behind my back... like it was nothing... we're done... I can't believe you could tell them and not me... your are such a liar... I could never trust you again." The phone clicked. I started crying again and they all tried to console me. "I've lost him... forever." They kept consoling me, telling me that he would get over it, but I knew better. That last part, about never trusting me again was the worst. I knew he believed in loyalty and trust. It was in his bones. I knew that he would have never done the same thing. I even knew that one of his ex-girlfriends had practically assaulted him one night trying to get him to sleep with her and he just brushed her aside. He was a really good man and I just threw him away. *******Dennis ******* Work. I buried myself in my work for a couple of days and then went home for Christmas. My family asked what had happened between me and Jennifer twice, but they could tell by my answers that it was best to leave it alone. The holidays went slowly. It was hard to see the happy couples in my family, but it was nice to be around loved ones. When it was over I went back to work to build my career. *******Jennifer ******* My girlfriends helped me put all my stuff in a U-Haul since my mother was working. We filled it up and I drove home, having finished my degree in 4-1/2 years. Well, I did change majors once. All the way home, I thought about the fact that his family only lived 25 miles away. But I never did anything about it. I knew he would be home for Christmas. They had a close family. Still, I couldn't face him. *******Dennis ******* I heard from Jennifer once a week for a few months. Each time she would leave a message on my phone just asking to talk. I couldn't do it. I was too hurt, too prideful, and too scared that the sound of her voice would lure me back against my will. The last time she sounded really strange and desperate, but once I started refusing her calls, I could never bring myself to call her accept one or call her back. March 2001 *******Jennifer ******* I called Dennis every week, like clockwork. I wanted him to hear my voice and know that I still loved him, no matter what. I tried to sound calm and reassuring, but it was getting difficult. The second month after we broke up, the morning sickness started. I knew immediately what it was. It had to be. It was my penance for doing what I had done. Life really had a way of getting even. I had thrown away the best man I ever knew and now I was faced with being pregnant alone. I was home and finally, after confirmation from the doctor, had to tell my mother and sister. "Mom. I have some news." She just looked at me and waited. "I'm pregnant." She looked at me. "You think Diane and I can't tell what morning sickness is? We've known since it started that it had to be that. " I looked at the floor. "What do you think I should do?" When she didn't answer immediately, I looked up. Her eyes were tearing. She was Catholic and never believed in abortion, so I was surprised by her answer. "You have to decide if you want to keep this baby. Is Dennis the father?" "Yes, Mom, of course. I've been with only him for over a year." "I thought you guys always used protection?" "Mom, I was on the pill the entire time at college. You know that. I didn't go off it and I didn't forget. It just happened. Pills are not 100%." "Well, there are plenty of people who would love to adopt a healthy child." I looked at her. Oh. She hadn't meant abortion. But I knew in my heart that I couldn't do that, either. I said quietly. "I've thought about this and I think I'm going to keep it." My mother stared at me. Then Diane spoke from the other side of the room. We had discussed the situation with Dennis endlessly and she knew how I felt about him. "And what about Dennis? Do you think Dennis should know about it? What will he do when he learns it's his child?" I had been thinking about this for a while now. "I'm not going to tell him. I don't want him to feel obligated to me in any way. If he comes back to me it has to be because he loves me, not because of a child. He is such a good man that he would do it out of obligation to the child. He's very big on that and I don't want him that way. That would only lead to him hating me for it, believing that I got pregnant and kept the child to trap him. Not going to happen!" Diane spoke, spitting out words of hate. "If he loved you, he wouldn't have let you go in the first place." I had never told them about Don, so I did. "But that was so long ago? Didn't you explain that you were not in love yet, you two had just started dating exclusively, and that you were just acting like a 'guy'?" Diane was a little hateful toward men right now, having had her boyfriend cheat on her. I turned to her. "I didn't see you take back your boyfriend after he cheated on you. Why would you expect Dennis to act any differently?" She stared at me. "Look, the worst part I haven't told you yet. My girlfriends found out and were pestering me about it at a party. I had been drinking and finally just blurted out that I had gotten drunk and fucked Don." My mother glared at my use of the 'f' word. "He overheard me telling my girlfriends at a party that I had slept with Don while we were supposed to be exclusive; loyalty is something that is very big to him. He found out in the most awful way what I had done. I can't blame him now. I still want him back, but I know why he won't talk to me. It's my own damn fault." I was fighting back the tears. I kept telling myself not to cry. It was quiet for a moment, and then my mother spoke. "Look. We don't need to decide this right now. There's always time to think about it. You might change your mind or he might change his mind." I sighed resignedly. "No, mother. I don't think he will change his mind and I know I won't change mine. I'm going to have this child and raise it. I don't care if I have to be alone doing it. It's a part of me and it's a part of the man I still love. If Dennis ever decides to speak to me normally, then I will tell him. Otherwise, he will never know." The last few words I had to choke out while holding back the tears. I was so unsure, but tried to act as if I was strong and knew what I wanted. Finally, my mother relented and her face softened. She turned to me and put her arm on mine. "Well, we have plenty of room here in this old house. Now we can go shopping and start getting ready." I was so thankful that she started acting upbeat and that she was trying to get behind me that I gave her a big, crushing hug. It was probably the first really hard hug I had given her in years. When I pulled back she looked up. "Diane and I will do whatever we can to help, right Diane?" She looked at Diane rather pointedly. Diane stared for a second and I could tell mother was mentally brow-beating her into submission. She relented. "Sure. I'd love to help. Aunt Diane. I like that sound of that!" *******Dennis ******* The project I was working on was moving along well. I had gotten my graduate degree in computer science, so I knew several computer languages, had done coding, even taken database classes, so I felt well prepared for work. It was only three months in and the small project was doing well enough that we all went out for drinks the last Friday in March. There were only 10 people on the project, but we had another 10 from elsewhere in the company. We were young and excited about making our way in life, so we tended to congregate on Fridays. I was talking to a young woman named Mary. She was small, only about 5'2", with a slightly plump body. I had heard her say that she had been a cheerleader in college, but she explained that that was 20 pounds ago; like she had to explain that she used to be really fit, but no longer was. It didn't matter to me. I liked her as a person and she was fun to be with. She looked up at me as we worked on our third margaritas. "You ever had a serious relationship?" The question was somewhat out of the blue, so I looked at her questioningly. "Where did that come from?" "I broke up with my boyfriend of 2 years. I thought we might move to a more permanent relationship, but we both realized that we didn't want to be married. I just wondered if you had been in anything like that." I thought it over briefly while she explained. "Yes, I was." She waited for a response. "And...?" "I don't like to talk about it." She shrugged. "Sorry, didn't mean to pry. I'm just not very good at making conversation right now. I always get morose when I drink. I guess I'm not over him yet." "I'm not over her, either." Her eyebrows went up at that. "Really? I thought you guys immediately moved on and were able to put it behind you." "I don't know about that; I still think about her way too much." She stared up at me for a few minutes. "Want to go back to your place... and talk about it?" I knew what she meant. She was pretty bold and straightforward about it. Since she was on another project, I supposed if we slept together it wouldn't get in the way at work. "Sure." We made our excuses about 5 minutes apart. She went out first and then I followed, hoping nobody connected us. I headed towards my car and I saw some lights flash to my right. She was sitting in hers, waiting. I got in and she followed me back to my apartment. She met me as we headed into the building. "Look. No strings, no requirement to entertain me. I just want to sit and talk to someone." I looked at her. "Agreed." We got up to my apartment and I asked if she wanted something to drink. She opted for just water. I pulled out my one extravagance for myself, a bottle of nice scotch, and poured it over ice. She sat on the couch and I sat next to her. "Nice place. I guess with that Master's degree they pay you better than me. Most of us couldn't afford this neighborhood." "I got a good deal by signing a long lease." The talk died for a second while we each took a drink and thought about where this was headed. "I lied when I said my boyfriend and I broke up because 'we' decided 'we' didn't want to be married. I actually found out he slept with an old girlfriend after we had been living together for a year. What a jerk!" I looked at her. Oh, what the fuck! "That's what happened with my girlfriend and me." "You cheated on her?" "No, she cheated on me. That's not the worst part. The worst part is that I found out about it at a Christmas party when I overheard her bragging about it to her girlfriends." "Ouch! So you guys broke up right then?" "Oh, yeah. I left and have never spoken to her again. Oh, except for when she came to the apartment here and tried to explain it. What's to explain? She fucked another guy. Period. End of story." Mary looked up at me. "Dennis? You know the real reason why I wanted to come to your apartment?" She was looking up at me with her big brown eyes. "You want to sleep with me?" I wasn't normally this forward, but she was and the alcohol was loosening my tongue. "Yes. Is that bad?" "Why? We're consenting adults. We've both been hurt. How long has it been since you had sex?" "Two long months." I smiled. "Hmmm. It's been three for me." I leaned down and kissed her. She tasted like strawberry margaritas. I liked it. She moaned into my mouth and then pulled away. "God, I'm horny. I was used to having sex every day before I broke up with Mark." She leaned back in and started kissing me again. I reached up and squeezed her tits. They were soft and fleshy under her sweater and bra. She moaned again, so I broke off the kiss and reached for the bottom of her sweater. She knew what I was going for and stood up off the couch. She reached down for the sweater and ripped it off in one move. She was definitely the voluptuous type. She looked around and then headed for the bedroom. She kicked off her heels and had her bra off before she disappeared into the room, I was right behind her. Life’s Strange Turns Ch. 05-06 We undressed ourselves quickly and joined each other on the bed. I looked at her body. She was definitely a curvy girl. She had a few extra pounds around the waist and butt, but she was pretty, soft, pliable, and ready to fuck. We were both so sex starved that we kissed for only a couple of minutes; me with my hand rubbing her pussy and her jacking me off when she pulled back. "Just fuck me. Please. Just fuck me!" I reached to the bedside table and pulled out a condom. I ripped it open and slid it over my dick. She watched carefully. Then I climbed up on her and settled myself between her legs in the classic missionary position. She reached down and guided me to her pussy. She was pretty wet, but still rubbed the head back and forth and then I had to ease it in a couple of inches, back it out, and do it again. Finally, I was buried in her. She moaned her approval and wrapped her legs around me. I started thrusting and at the same time bent my head over to suck at her big eraser nipples. She moaned some more. I was thrusting in and out, enjoying the feeling of a woman's pussy again, when the first visual hit me. It was of the first time that Jennifer and I had had sex. She too had been the aggressor. We had fucked missionary style just like this; the two of us reveling in our own pleasure, no talking. In no time at all, Mary was thrashing and moaning and cumming on my dick. I only lasted about 20 seconds after that, cumming in large spasms, filling the condom. After I rested for a second I rolled off her. She rose up on one elbow, looked at me, and then kissed me on the cheek. "That was nice. It was quick, but we both needed that, don't you think?" I laughed a little at her frankness. "Hmmmmm. I agree." I removed the condom and threw it away. We both went into the bathroom and I pulled out an extra toothbrush that I had under the sink. She was impressed. We were both naked and I giggled a little when she brushed her teeth and her tits shook and wiggled. Tits were always an amazing thing to me. After we finished, we took turns emptying our bladders and returned to the bed. It was interesting to me that she was so relaxed with her body, remaining naked in front of me after our first encounter. Finally we hit the bed and within 15 minutes we were both asleep, naked, together. When I woke in the morning it was 6:30am. My hours were always early now, even on the weekends, that I was working regularly. Mary was still there, sleeping soundly. I stared at her. She was so cute laying there, sleeping so soundly and contentedly. I looked over her pale face and brown hair. She was actually quite pretty. I got up and got into the shower. I was in the shower, just finishing when I heard the bathroom door open. "I didn't wake you with the shower, did I?" "Yeah." She mumbled, still waking up. "But I need to get up and get home. I have a roommate right now and I'd rather be in bed when she wakes up. She always sleeps late, so I should be safe." She peeked around the curtain at me. "Are you done yet?" "Yes, I was just getting out? You want to get in?" "No, I was just checking because I have to go to the bathroom. I wanted to check on flushing while you were in the shower in case you get the hot blasts like we do in our apartment." "No, the water temperature is pretty steady here." I turned off the water and reached for my towel. "But I'm getting out anyway." She sat down on the commode and started peeing. It was a little shocking. I had never been that relaxed with anyone until I had been with Jennifer for 6 months. Mary was doing it like it was an everyday occurrence. She looked up at me. I must have been staring. "What?" She giggled. "Haven't you ever seen a girl pee before?" "Uh, yes. But not after the first night." She shrugged. "Sorry. I'm not very shy." "I can see that." I laughed and walked out of the bathroom while she finished. When she came out I was getting dressed and she did the same. "Do you want some breakfast?" "No." She turned to me. "I have to get home. But maybe next time we sleep together I'll stay for breakfast." "Next time, huh?" "Well, yeah! Last night we were both just helping each other with pity fucks. We had both been without sex for too long. Next time I plan on enjoying a long session." I tried not to act surprised, but this woman was very outgoing and forthright. "Okay. Thanks for the warning. I'll save up my energy." She smiled and punched me in the arm. "Okay, smartass. I'll see you later." Then she was gone and I tried to figure out if I had just been used. Hmmm. Oh, well. Whatever! Chapter 6. Labor Day (literally), 2001 *******Jennifer ******* I went into labor on Labor Day. Another coincidence that made me groan when it was mentioned. My mother and sister took me to the hospital and 6 hours later I had a beautiful baby girl. At least I thought she would be beautiful as soon as she got over the trauma of being removed from a nice, warm body. When they brought her to me not too much later, I tried my first attempt at breast feeding. It felt weird the first time, but by the second day, my breasts were releasing their milk freely and it actually felt good when Angela, the name I had decided to give her, fed on them. My mother and sister had come around and were helpful, supportive, and ready to assist in any way. I just hoped that I had made the right decision. Raising a child alone was going to be tough. Whenever they came to visit me, I could tell that they were happy for me. But I also knew that they were debating whether or not to call Dennis. Finally, I brought the subject up. "Mom, Diane. I'm serious about raising this baby myself and not bringing Dennis into it. Do not, I repeat, do not call him or his family. I know they live nearby, but do not do it." Diane spoke first. "I just think he has a right to know, that's all. I mean, didn't you put his name on the birth certificate?" "No, he doesn't have to know, but I did put his name on the birth certificate. He is the father. But he and I split up when he didn't know I was pregnant. I was on the pill, so as far as he knows, I've moved on. Well, I have. I'm going to be a mother and this child is going to grow up and have a great life. I can't change mine, but I can certainly determine hers. You hear me?" Diane glared at me. My mother answered. "Yes, dear." She patted my hand a little too condescendingly for me. "We hear you. We know that you want to do this, but you have no idea what it's like to raise a child alone." "I won't be doing it alone if you two help me." "Don't worry. I'll do everything I can; and so will Diane. If we have to we can always discuss this again later." *******Dennis ******* Mary and I were spending a lot of time together by September. She was pretty, a fantastic lover with an adventurous streak, and supportive of my ever-increasing hours at work. We would usually end up back at my place whenever we wanted to be together. She had broached the subject of moving in together, but I had tried to avoid the subject. I didn't want any dependencies between the two of us. On Labor Day, while I was making breakfast a funny thing happened. I was in the kitchen making some eggs and bacon when she came in and sat quietly behind me. Anyone who knew Mary, knew that she was anything but quiet. She was normally very loquacious and, as most people found her, bubbly. I didn't even realize she was there when I turned around, about to yell out her name. "Oh." I jumped a little. "I didn't hear you come in." She looked at me strangely. It stopped me in my tracks. "What?" She pulled out a folder and laid it on the table. "This." There was no reason to say anything else. As soon as she laid it on the table I knew what it was. It was the folder from my desk that had mementos, pictures, and even some letters from Jennifer. I looked at it every once in awhile when I felt a little lonely and must have left it out. Jennifer could fill up my life like nobody ever did or has done since. "Oh... Jennifer." She looked at me. "Isn't this a little weird? I mean you have things in here that lovers keep, but usually guys don't pull it out and stare at it once you've broken up. And now I find it on top of your desk, like you were just looking thru it." "I haven't looked at it in a while. I just haven't gotten around to deciding what to do with it." She watched my reaction closely. "You're a bad liar. You just haven't let go of her yet. That's okay. I can deal with that. Just don't get morbid about it." "Nah, I was just looking. Now put it back and let's eat breakfast." I tried to get past it as soon as possible. She put it back and we tried to move on. Dec 17th, 2001 *******Jennifer ******* I was sitting in front of the family Christmas tree breast-feeding Angela. She was almost done and her eyes were already starting to close. She finished and I tried to burp her a little, but she was exhausted. So was I. She was sleeping well, but only at four hour stretches. She was hungry every four hours and, although I hated waking up all the time, my breasts were producing enough milk that if she didn't feed right away, they would start leaking. The only problem I was feeling was that it was the holidays. In fact, it was the one year anniversary of my big blow up with Dennis. Couple that with my hormonal changes after birth, and I was a prime suspect for depression. I knew that, but there's nothing you can do about it when it comes. I found myself crying, tears streaming down my face, when my mother and sister came back from the mall. They looked at me and gathered on either side of me. "What's wrong, honey?" "I don't know. I don't know." My mother drew me close to her. "No worries, baby. Let's put on something interesting, like Scrooged. I love Bill Murray in that." "Okay." My sister left the room, doing something in the other room. My mother loaded the VCR and went to get some drinks for us. I stared at the TV as a trailer ran. I couldn't get my mind around what was happening to me. I felt a little detached from everything. Finally, my mother came back and gave me a diet soda. I took a drink and looked up at her. Everything came into focus again. ''What are we watching?" My mother looked at me strangely for a second. "I decided I wanted to watch a Christmas movie. That okay with you?" "Uh, sure." I looked up at the Advent calendar on the wall, seeing if there was a chocolate piece available. That's when it hit me again. One year since I lost Dennis. Shit! My mother saw the look come across my face and sat down, trying to console me. "What is it, dear?" "It was one year ago tonight that I made a fool of myself and Dennis left me." My mother looked at me the way only a mother can. "Sweetheart, it was one year ago today that he found out. You made a fool of yourself several months before that." "Well, in any case, I hope he's having a nice Christmas." "He's probably visiting his family. That's only 20 miles to their house. Why don't you go over and see him? Sometimes a man can't bring himself to admit he's wrong or to make the first move to make up. You should see if he's over it." I thought about it seriously. "What was he wrong about, mother? He didn't do anything wrong. Maybe he's a little self righteous, but I'm the one that fucked up. No. I can't go see him, I'm not ready." My mother, after once again flinching at my use of the f-word, patted my hand and gave me another motherly, dripping-with-sarcasm response. "Yeah, let's wait until you're ready." *******Dennis ******* Mary was over again. We had been seeing each other (read 'fucking') for about 9 months now. Neither of us had mentioned moving in together for a while. We had just finished Chinese takeout and I was putting the leftovers away when it hit me. There in front of me was a calendar. December 17th... one year since 'that day'. I started to tear up a little, remembering how hurt I was when I heard her tell that story. It made me think that we, as people, were never safe in our relationships. It had hurt more than I thought possible. I wanted to go and look at her picture and a few of the letters she wrote to me when we were apart for even a short period. For some reason the pain actually made me feel alive. Suddenly, I heard Mary behind me. "What's the matter?" "What?" "You're standing there staring at the calendar with the 'fridge open and the food in your hand like a statue." I put the food in the refrigerator and turned around, trying not to let her see my pain, but she knew immediately. "Oh. I remember you telling me that 'it' happened before Christmas. Is this the fateful anniversary?" She seemed to be able to talk frankly about anything, but I didn't want to. "Yeah. One year ago today." I started to turn away. "Let's go out to a bar and raise some hell!" She was trying to be upbeat, but I was not feeling it. "I'm not really in the mood for that. Let's just stay here and watch a movie." She looked at me for a second. "Okay. That's fine. Then, later, I'm going to sexually assault you!" That brought a smile to me. She was the most sexual person I had ever met. Jennifer loved having sex, but Mary seemed to crave it like nobody I had ever met. "We'll see." I picked up the last of the Chinese food containers to put it away. "We'll see, my ass. I'm going to fuck your brains out!" I laughed. She had managed to bring me out of a dark mood to an almost normal one. I turned from putting the last item away and she was already topless, her large fleshy tits on display. "Not waiting until after the movie, eh?" She moved in front of me and dropped to her knees. "Fuck that, I need some dick!" She worked on my pants and had me naked from the waist down in no time. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" She wrapped her fingers around my rapidly growing dick and started licking it. I moaned. "Yeah, now that's what I'm talking about, too!" She was definitely very good at blowjobs. She pulled back and looked up at me. "It's hard to be somber and morose with your dick in my mouth, huh!" I laughed. "Definitely. Now quit talking and get back to work, slut." She giggled. "So now I'm your slut, huh? Well, I do love sex almost more than anything else. My girlfriends tell me I must have some 'guy' in my genes." She took my dick back into her mouth. "I certainly don't see any guy in that hot fucking body!" She smiled around my dick and pulled back. "If you think my body is so fucking hot, then take me into the living room, bend me over the couch, and fuck me!" I grabbed her by the hand and stood her up. I kicked off my pants and boxers. I led her into the living room. She giggled as I did so, knowing what was coming. I turned her to face away from me and groped her tits from behind. They were so fucking nice! I pushed on her back a little and she bent over and placed her hands on the couch. I kneeled down behind her and worked on pulling down her pants and panties. Once I had them around her ankles, I slapped her on the ass and she bent over further. Her pussy and asshole both came into view. I pulled her cheeks apart and licked her asshole. She always loved that and it showed when she moaned. I lapped at it a few times and took my finger and worked it into her pussy. She was already wet. I put a second finger into her pussy and rubbed her clit with my thumb while I continued to lick and poke her asshole with my tongue. She was now moaning pretty loudly. She raised her head up and turned towards me. "Enough with damn foreplay, fuck me now!" I smiled. "Getting a little demanding, aren't we?" I slapped her on the ass with my other hand. "Yes! That was nice. Fuck me and smack my ass like that." I stood up, my dick hard and leaking. I lined it up and felt for her pussy. I found it and buried my dick in there in one slow move. She groaned again. I started pumping in and out at a leisurely pace. She put both hands on the couch and leaned forward a little more, putting her at a better angle for fucking. I started pumping hard into her and then pulled my hand back and smacked her ass. She groaned. "Fuck, yes. Spank my little ass!" I didn't want to argue with her, but her ass was not little. It was, in fact, nice and round, wide enough to be great to hold onto, and a bit of a bubble butt. It was fleshy and delicious. I loved grabbing her hips, stretching her ass open so I could watch as I pounded her. So I did. Mary groaned throatily and yelled. "Oh, fuck. I'm going to cum!" I pounded her harder and reached under her to finger her clit. As soon as I made contact with it she had an orgasm. She jerked under me and thrashed for a few seconds and then went still. I was still buried in her, enjoying the warmth of her pussy. She started standing up and pushed me back away from her. "Gimme some cum, baby. I want to swallow it!" I had never argued with a woman wanting to suck my dick and wasn't going to start now. She dropped to her knees and looked up at me with a grin. She lifted it up so that she could lick my balls. Then she licked up the entire length until she could slip the head in her mouth. I was pretty fucking turned on at this point and she was going to get her reward soon. I groaned and started thrusting. She knew the signs well. She put her little fist around the base to jack it as I thrust at her mouth. Her mouth she placed around the head and kept her tongue up against the sensitive underside. That was going to do it. She looked up at me and gave me a bit of a grin, even with my dick in her mouth and I groaned and started shooting into her mouth. She opened it a little more and let me watch as I squirted into her. I finally stopped and she made a big production out of swallowing it. "Yum! My favorite dessert after Chinese food!" She went back to my dick and cleaned up any of her juices and my cum that was left and then stood up. She kissed me briefly and disappeared back into the bathroom. I moved around to the couch and sat down. Whew! She was quite the little minx. It's just too bad I didn't love her like I had Jennifer. She was great at sex and nice to be around, but there was something holding me back with her. I think we both felt it, but that was a discussion for another night. Summer 2002 *******Jennifer ******* Angela was growing fast and was as perfect a little girl as I could imagine. She was sleeping 8 hours a night and was no trouble at all now. Well, at least no trouble other than being a baby. That, in itself, was a full time job. But it was an amazing one as well. I now knew what my mother told me one time about the greatest part of being a woman was having a baby. I had never felt a bond like it. I would do anything for her. She was mine and I would protect her, care for her, love her, and never let her get into any trouble.... Oh, great! I just sounded like my mother, who I had considered overprotective when I was a teenager. Now I knew why. You just wanted everything to be great for your child. I was at the mall, having visited my mother and Diane at the travel office when I ran into Dennis' mother. She was alone and carrying a couple of bags from the mall's anchor stores when she looked up and saw that I was looking at her. I didn't know what to do. It was my first encounter with anyone from his family since our breakup and now the birth of my child. She smiled at me. I nodded hello back and pushed the stroller that direction, trying not to be rude. "Hello, Mrs. Johnson. How are you?" She smiled broadly. "I'm fine Jennifer, how are you? You have a baby!" She leaned over and looked at Angela, who was staring up at her with Dennis' brilliant blue eyes. "Yes, this is Angela." Mrs. Johnson fussed over her in the typical motherly fashion and then looked up. "She's beautiful. Great big blue eyes and a bit of your hair color, I think. Well, at least when she gets more hair. How old is she?" Life’s Strange Turns Ch. 05-06 "Thanks. She just turned 8 months. She's a handful, but sleeping well already, so things are looking up." I took two months off her real age to try to eliminate her knowing that it was Dennis' baby. Mrs. Johnson looked at Angela closely. Uh-oh. Did she recognize the eyes? They were definitely her family's eyes. Was she thinking about the age and calculating when I must have gotten pregnant? "I didn't know you got married. How're things going?" Bad assumption, but I knew what she was doing. She was fishing for information to pass to Dennis. "I'm not married. It's just me and Angela." That was all I was going to say. "Oh, sorry to hear that. Raising a child alone is tough." I wanted to change the subject. "Yeah. So how is Dennis doing?" "He's working too much and trying to work his way up the corporate ladder. Why, I have no idea." "Tell him I said hello and that I hope things are well with him. He was always a very nice guy." She stared at me for a second. "Okay. I will. Well, I hope the rest of your summer goes well. She's gorgeous. And you are a beautiful mother." "Thanks." I started to move away as quickly as possible without making it look like I wanted to get out of there. I just hoped she didn't start speculating about the baby's age. *******Dennis ******* Mary was a godsend for a while, but I knew I didn't love her and wondered how people in that situation moved on. She had come over to watch another movie with me and we were sitting on the couch. She went into the bedroom to get a blanket. She was always a little cold after she sat still for a while, so this was not abnormal. When she didn't return right away, I got curious. I went into the bedroom to see what was taking so long and she was at my desk. She heard me come in and she looked up at me with tears in her eyes. The folder on Jennifer was open on the desk... where I had unfortunately left it, along with the engagement ring, which I had kept. "I know you don't love me like you loved her, but at some point you need to move on or go try to find her. You can't live with this affecting everything you do. I'm going to be honest. I'm not sure I love you, but I really like being with you, having sex with you, just hanging around you. You are a very nice guy, so it's easy to be with you. I haven't always had nice boyfriends, so that may contribute to how I feel about you. But you keep going back to this file and reminiscing and it's just not right. I feel like I'm competing with a ghost. There's no way I can compete with someone who, no matter how she really is, you've probably built up to be better than she was back then. I feel like I'm cheating on her with you." "Mary, I'm sorry...." I started before she interrupted me. "Really? You can actually stand there and say you're sorry? About what? You don't feel sorry for keeping this file around. You pull it out and look at it way more than you should. You even kept the ring and take it out when you think about her. If you can't move on, then maybe I should." I was stunned. I hadn't thought this far ahead. I knew that she was aware of my problem with letting go of Jennifer, but I didn't think it would push us apart. I can see now that that was stupid. I was not going to marry Mary and she needed to meet somebody who could, at some point, offer her stability and permanent companionship. I was not that man. "Maybe you're right. I may have completely romanticized my relationship with her. I don't know what I can do about it right now. I know that you deserve someone better than me. I can't offer you anything other than friendship and some sex. Sorry." She stared at me. "Wow! You actually came out and said that. Over the last couple of months, I think I knew it to be true, but I didn't think you could say that out loud. If I didn't already know that, I would be very upset. But I've known that for a while. I just thought that maybe I could make you forget her." "I wish you could, too. I can't get her out of my head and I really like you. You are a very beautiful person, wonderful to be with, and we are very good together. I just can't see myself spending the rest of my life with you." There was stunned silence for a few seconds. "I wish there was something I could do. But I think I've done everything a good girlfriend can do for that. If you don't love me now, then you never will. I need to go. Maybe I'll call you later." She stood up and left, leaving me there alone with my thoughts. Not a good thing. I went back into the living room and sat down heavily. What the fuck was I doing? How could I let a beautiful woman like Mary go when Jennifer was nowhere in my life? What was I going to do about it? There was only one thing to do. I picked up the phone and, not having Jennifer's number, called my parents. My mother answered. I went thru the standard how-are-you and family status that I always did before I got to the point. "Do you remember Jennifer?" There was a moment of silence. "Do you really have to ask that?" "Okay, sorry. Have you seen her or heard anything about her? Is she living in the area?" There was more silence. "Yes, we have seen her." That's it? No more information? Hello! "And... what about her?" "Well, she's not married, but she has a baby girl that I saw her with at the mall. Very pretty little baby girl. She looks so happy with her daughter." It hit me like a brick. Shit! She had moved on and had a kid now. Damn! "Oh, okay. Thanks." "Dennis, I'm your mother. I know what's going on. You thought she might still be on the market, right? You're still not over her, are you?" "I guess not. I was just thinking about where she was and what she was doing. I guess that closes that door." I wanted to get off the phone fast. "If I find out anything else, I'll let you know. That's all I can say right now." "Okay, thanks. Bye!" I hung up without waiting for her to respond. Damn it! She had moved on. I needed to do so as well.